Sunday, November 11, 2012

The Lord Lucan of Welsh mammals found squashed on road by Newtown

As one of the many people who have spent countless hours scouring the Welsh countryside for evidence of pine martens I’m not sure what I feel about the news that a young male has been found squashed on the road at Aberhafesp, just outside Newtown, Powys. On the one hand it’s reassuring to know they are still about and not just as memories or imagination. On the other hand it’s a shame that such a rare creature should be mown down by a driver.

This is the first specimen to be found in Wales since 1971 and the only other concrete proof in recent years has been a pine marten scat from the Vale of Rheidol in 2007.

There’s a report about the recent finding on Country Focus (Radio Wales, 11thNovember) which will be on the iPlayer until 18th November. If you want to get involved in the great pine marten hunt you should contact The VincentWildlife Trust. If you want to see what a pine marten looks like, or learn more about the scat survey methodology, here’s a (rather long-winded, sorry) film clip: